Prior art very high intensity, short duration pulsed light systems which operate in the visible part of the spectrum, such as flashlamps or intense pulsed lasers are currently used in aesthetic treatments by one of two known ways: a) Applying the light to the skin without applying any pressure on the treatment zone, so as not to interfere with the natural absorption properties of skin; and b) Applying pressure onto the skin by means of the exit window of the treatment device in contact with the skin, thereby expelling blood from the light path within the skin and enabling better transmission of the light to a skin target in cases where the spectral lines of the treatment light source match absorption lines of the blood.
The major applications of intense pulsed light or intense pulsed laser systems are hair removal, coagulation of blood vessels for e.g. port wine stains, telangectasia, spider veins and leg veins, multiple heating of blood vessels for e.g. rosacea, treatment of pigmented skin such as erasure of black stains and sun stains or tattoo removal, and removal of fine wrinkles by heating the tissue around the wrinkles, normally referred to as photorejuvenation.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,226,907, 5,059,192, 5,879,346, 5,066,293, 4,976,709, 6,120,497, 6,120,497, 5,626,631, 5,344,418, 5,885,773, 5,964,749, 6,214,034 and 6,273,884 describe various laser and non-coherent intense pulsed light systems. These prior art light systems are not intended to increase the natural absorption of the skin.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,595,568 and 5,735,844 describe a coherent laser system for hair removal whereby pressure is applied to the skin by a transparent contact device in contact therewith, in order to expel blood present in blood vessels from a treatment zone. In this approach blood absorption decreases in order to increase subcutaneous light penetration.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,630,811 and 5,853,407 also describe a coherent laser system for hair removal which restricts local blood flow, in order to reduce damage to the skin tissue surrounding the hairs. Local tissue structures are flattened by applying positive pressure or negative pressure to the skin. The treatment beam is limited to only 5 mm. The treatment beam is not suitable for a larger treatment spot per pulse of approximately 40 mm. Blood expulsion is not uniform and not instantaneous for such large treatment spots, and therefore blood may remain in the skin tissue after the laser beam has been fired. Also, a large-diameter treatment device may not be easily repositioned to another treatment site, due to the relatively high lifting force needed when negative pressure is applied to the skin. Furthermore, this laser system does not provide any means for preventing gel obstruction when negative pressure is applied to the skin.
Prior art efforts to expel blood vessels help in some cases to avoid unnecessary damage to skin structures which are not intended to be treated, such as unnecessary coagulation of blood vessels during a hair removal treatment. The reduction in damage to skin structures is not related to the immediate pain sensed during a treatment. The expulsion of blood involves a higher exposure of the hair shaft to the treatment pulse of light, resulting in higher local temperature and acute pain due to excessive heating of the nerves which surround the hair shafts. It is well known to light—based hair removal practitioners that accute pain is felt during the treatment when hairy areas, particularly characterized by dark thick hair, are impinged by the treatment beam, whereas firing the light beam on a hairless area is painless. It can therefore be concluded that the pain which is sensed during a hair removal treatment is generated by nerves surrounding the hair shafts, and not by nerves distributed in other areas of the skin. There is therefore a need for an improved apparatus for pain reduction without having to reduce the treatment energy density.
Applying a vacuum to the skin is a known prior art procedure, e.g. for the treatment of cellulites, which complements massaging the skin. Such a procedure produces a flow of lymphatic fluids so that toxic substances may be released from the tissue. As the vacuum is applied, a skin fold is formed. The skin fold is raised above the surrounding skin surface, and the movement of a handheld suction device across the raised skin performs the massage. The suction device is moved in a specific direction relative to the lymphatic vessels, to allow lymphatic fluids to flow in their natural flow direction. The lymphatic valve in each lymphatic vessel prevents the flow of lymphatic fluid in the opposite direction, if the suction device were moved incorrectly. Liquids generally accumulate if movement is not imparted to the raised skin. The massage, which is generally carried out by means of motorized or hand driven wheels or balls, draws lymphatic fluids from cellulite in the adipose subcutanous region and other deep skin areas, the depth being approximately 5-10 mm below the dermis.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,475 discloses a massaging device with which negative pressure is applied to the skin together during massaging. A similar massaging device which incorporates a radio frequency (RF) source for the improvement of lymphatic flow by slightly heating the adipose tissue is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,662,054. Some massaging systems, such as those produced by Deka and Cynosure, add a low power, continuous working (CW) light source of approximately 0.1-2 W/cm2, in order to provide deep heating of the adipose tissue by approximately 1-3° C. degrees and to enhance lymphatic circulation. The light sources associated with vacuum lymphatic massage devices are incapable of inducing blood vessel coagulation due to their low power. Also, prior art vacuum lymphatic massage devices are adapted to induce skin protrusion or to produce a skin fold by applying a vacuum.
Selective treatment of blood vessels by absorption of intense pulsed laser radiation is possible with Dye lasers operating at 585 nm, as well as with other types of lasers. Photorejuvenation has also been performed with Diode lasers in the near infrared spectral band of 800-980 nm and with Nd:YAG lasers having a frequrncy of approximately 1064 nm with limited success. The light emitted by such lasers is not well absorbed by tiny blood vessels or by the adjoining liquid. Broad band non-coherent intense pulsed light systems are also utilized for photorejuvenation with some success, although requiring more than 10 repeated treatments. The heat which is absorbed by the blood vessels, as a result of the light emitted by the intense short pulse devices, is transferred to adjacent collagen bundles.
The absorption of pulsed Diode and Nd:YAG laser beams by blood vessels is lower than the absorption of pulsed Dye laser beam. In order to compensate for limited photorejuvenation with red and infrared intense pulsed light and laser systems, a very high energy density as high as 30-60 J/cm2 needs to be generated. At such an energy density, the melanin-rich epidermis, particularly in dark skin, is damaged if not chilled. A method to reduce the energy density of intense pulsed lasers or non-coherent intense pulsed light sources which operate in the visible or the near infrared regions of the spectrum will thereforebe beneficial.
Pulsed dye lasers operating in the yellow spectral band of approximately 585-600 nm, which is much better absorbed by blood vessels, are also utilized for the smoothing of fine wrinkles. The energy density of light emitted by Dye lasers, which is approximately 3-5 J/cm2, is much lower than that of light emitted by other lasers. However, the pulse durations of light emitted by Dye lasers are very short, close to 1 microsecond, and therefore risk the epidermis in darker skin. Treatments of wrinkles with Dye lasers are slow, due to the low concentration of absorbing blood vessels, as manifested by the yellow or white color of treated skin, rather than red or pink characteristic of skin having a high concentration of blood vessels. Due to the low energy density of light emitted by Dye lasers, as many as 10 treatments may be necessary. A method to reduce the energy density of light generated by Dye lasers, or to reduce the number of required treatments at currently used energy density levels, for the treatment of fine wrinkles, would be beneficial.
Pulsed Dye lasers operating at 585 nm are also utilized for the treatment of vascular lesions such as port wine stains or telangectasia or for the treatment of spider veins. The energy density of the emitted light is approximately 10-15 J/cm2, and is liable to cause a burn while creating the necessary purpura. A method to reduce the energy density of light emitted by Dye lasers for the treatment of vascular lesions would be highly beneficial.
Hair removal has been achieved by inducing the absorption of infrared light, which is not well absorbed by melanin present in hair strands, impinging on blood vessels. More specifically, absorption of infrared light by blood vessels at the distal end of hair follicles contributes to the process of hair removal. High intensity pulsed Nd:YAG lasers, such as those produced by Altus, Deka, and Iridex, which emit light having an energy density of more than 50 J/cm2, are used for hair removal. The light penetration is deep, and is often greater than 6 millimeters. Some intense pulsed light or pulsed laser systems, such as that produced by Syneron, used for hair removal or photorejuvenation also employ an RF source for further absorption of energy within the skin.
The evacuation of smoke or vapor, which is produced following the impingement of monochromoatic light on a skin target, from the gap between the distal end window of a laser system and the skin target, is carried out in conjunction with prior art ablative laser systems such as Co2, Erbium or Excimer laser systems. The produced smoke or vapor is usually purged by the introduction of external fresh air at greater than atmospheric pressure.
Coagulative lasers such as pulsed dye lasers or pulsed Nd:YAG lasers, which treat vascular lesions under the skin surface without ablating the skin surface, are generally not provided with an evacuation chamber which produces subatmospheric pressure over a skin target.
Some prior art intense pulsed laser systems, which operate in the visible and near infrared region of the spectrum and treat lesions under the skin surface, e.g. vascular lesions, with pulsed dye laser systems or pulsed Nd:YAG lasers, employ a skin chilling system. Humidity generally condenses on the distal window, due to the use of a skin chilling system. The humidity is not caused by the skin treatment, but rather by the low temperature of the distal window. It would be advantageous to evacuate the condensed vapors from the distal window of the laser system prior to the next firing of the laser.
The non-ablative treatment of hair or of vascular lesions with intense pulsed lasers or with other intense pulsed light sources is often very painful, particularly during the treatment of dark and thick unwanted hairs which may appear in a bikini line, on the legs, or on the back. Pain is caused by the exposure of treatment light to nerve endings located in the epidermis and dermis, and by sensory receptors of hair shafts located deep in the dermis. Due to the pain sensation, a patient usually cannot tolerate more than a few laser shots, necessitating a long delay until a subsequent laser shot. The treatment rate, particularly for large areas such as on the legs, is therefore considerably reduced. The most common prior art method for alleviating or preventing pain caused by the non-ablative treatment of hair or of vascular lesions with intense pulsed light is the application of EMLA cream produced by AstraZeneca Canada Inc. Such cream is a topical anesthetic applied to the skin approximately 30-60 minutes before a treatment, which numbs the skin and decreases the sensation of pain. This prior art method is generally impractical due to the long and inconvenient waiting time between the application of the EMLA cream and the treatment. Since health professionals prefer to maximize the number of patients to be treated during a given time period, the health clinic must provide a large waiting room for those patients that are waiting to be treated by intense pulsed light following the application of the EMLA cream.
Pain caused by the non-ablative treatment of hair or of vascular lesions may also be alleviated or prevented by reducing the energy density of the intense pulsed light. Energy density reduction, however, compromises the treatment quality, and therefore is an unacceptable solution, particularly due the relatively high cost of treatment.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,264,649 and 6,530,920 disclose a cooling head for a skin treatment laser and a method to reduce or eliminate pain during laser ablative treatments of the skin by cooling the skin surrounding the treatment area. The pain is associated with the ablation or burning of a skin surface during skin resurfacing. An extraction port of the cooling head enables removal of debris material, such as smoke produced by the skin treatment laser, from the treatment area and for connection to a vacuum source. Evacuated vapor such as smoke is replaced by fresh and clean air.
With respect to prior art smoke evacuation devices, a significant subatmospheric pressure is generally not generated over a skin surface due to the introduction of fresh atmospheric pressure air. If subatmospheric pressure were maintained over a skin surface, the treatment handpiece would be prevented from being lifted and displaced from one skin site to another during the treatment process. Additionally, prior art smoke evacuation devices are not associated with non-ablative lasers, such as a long-pulse Nd:YAG laser, which treat tissue only under the skin surface and do not produce smoke resulting from the vaporization of the skin surface. Furthermore, the application of heat releasing gel onto a skin target is not conducive for the ablation of a skin surface or for the subsequent evacuation of debris material since the gel forms a barrier between the skin surface and the surrounding air.
Current laser and IPL skin treatment systems utilize chilling means. However, pain is still noticeable.
A need therefore exists for alleviating the resulting pain caused by the treatment of unwanted hair, unwanted wrinkles or vascular lesions by intense pulsed light or intense pulsed laser systems, without reducing the light source intensity, without applying a topical anesthetic, and without using a chiller as means to reduce pain.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for the treatment of subcutaneous lesions, such as vascular lesions, by a non-ablative, high intensity pulsed laser or light system operating at wavelengths shorter than 1800 nm which does not damage the surface of the skin or the epidermis.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for controlling the depth of subcutaneous light absorption.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for increasing the absorption of light which impinges a skin target by increasing the concentration of blood vessels thereat.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus by which the energy density level of intense pulsed light that is suitable for hair removal, fine wrinkle removal, including removal of wrinkles around the eyes and in the vicinity of the hands or the neck, and the treatment of port wine stain or rosacea may be reduced relative to that of the prior art.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus by which the number of required treatments for hair removal, fine wrinkle removal, including removal of wrinkles around the eyes and in the vicinity of the hands or the neck, and the treatment of port wine stain or rosacea at currently used energy density levels may be reduced relative to that of the prior art.
It is yet an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for repeated evacuation, prior to the firing of a subsequent light pulse, of vapors which condense on the distal window due to the chilling of laser treated skin.
It is yet an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for alleviating the resulting pain caused by the treatment of unwanted hair, unwanted wrinkles or vascular lesions by intense pulsed light or intense pulsed laser systems, without reducing the light source intensity, without applying a topical anesthetic, and without relying on skin chilling for pain reduction.
It is yet an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for speedy repositioning of a vacuum-assisted, non-ablative light-based treatment handpiece from one site to another.
It is yet an additional object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for a vacuum-assisted, light-based skin treatment which is conducive for the application of a heat releasing gel onto a skin surface.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.